The deal lets Amazon delay collecting sales tax until late next year - and avoids a costly referendum fight at the ballot box. The governor says the negotiations worked because both sides had leverage.
Brown: "We were threatening the tax and Amazon was threatening the referendum. And when you get two threats, that gives you an opportunity to find a compromise. And that's exactly what we have."
Now, all sides say they hope the federal government will set rules for collecting online sales tax. Amazon's Paul Misener:
Misener: "The sales tax issue must be resolved in Congress. It's the appropriate place, and it's the only way that California will be able to obtain all the sales tax revenue that is available to be collected."
With this deal, Amazon says it plans to bring 10,000 distribution jobs to California in the next several years.
Also today, the governor signed a measure that will streamline improvements to the Port of San Francisco so the city can host the America's Cup yacht race in 2013.
